Content (Page 49)
Connecting in a Disaster
While we hope that our life is easy, with few storms to toss us around, when disasters do happen, we truly see our ability and our need to connect with others. And even more striking, we see just how much it brings out the best in everyone.
The Expansiveness of Joy on Sukkot
Joy expands who we are. And that’s a message we need to remember for Sukkot.
Teaching Our Tongue to Say “I Don’t Know”
“Knowing” can be a big problem, because “knowing” prevents “learning.” And so perhaps that’s why the Rabbis urged us to do something very challenging – to “teach [our] tongue to say ‘I don’t know.’”
It’s Not About Being Happy — It’s About Doing Good
There are two Hebrew words that we say many, many times over these High Holy Days. Those two Hebrew words are, of course, shanah tovah. And yet we almost always mistranslate them.
How Deep Are Our Thoughts?
It is far too easy for us to skim headlines and ignore context, to regurgitate ideas without considering them critically, and to find support only for perspectives we already buy into. Instead, we have a responsibility to go in depth.
Jonah Lehrer and the Betrayal of Trust in the Internet Age
In the internet age, we are all not only consumers of content, but producers of it, as well. Anything we say or share might become the basis of others’ work, and more likely than not, they will simply have to trust that we are telling the truth.
What Playing Games Can Teach Us About Prayer
We want to be inspired. We want to find strength. We want to feel connected to something larger than ourselves. But those moments rarely happen by accident.
What Believers and Atheists Can Learn From Each Other (co-written with Sam McNerney)
It’s inherently challenging for believers and atheists to have productive conversations. But one bright person interested in broadening the conversation is Sam McNerney, a science writer who focuses on cognitive science and an atheist interested in religion from a psychological point of view. So as two people with different religious outlooks we wondered: what can we learn from each other?
Is Religion Analytical or Intuitive?
why might critical thinking lessen religious belief? Why might intuitive thinking strengthen it? And what are the implications for the religious community?
Why Bernie Madoff Didn’t Lurk in Dark Alleys
Different forms of stealing have different “feels” to them. Physically taking money from another person feels more violent, more immediate, and less justifiable of an action. “Cooking the books,” however, can easily feel explainable by the perpetrator.
The Science of Compassion — A Conversation with Professor David DeSteno
There often is tension between our religious beliefs and our religious identities — between our religious teachings that tell us to be compassionate to all people, and the way religious groups can create an “us” and “them” mentality. But “who we are” is very much “what we do.”
What is Most Surprising About the Religion and Science Discussion?
While conversations about truth and morality often pit science and religion in opposition to each other, when we talk about meaning and values, science and religion can come together in productive ways.